I’m supposed to go somewhere tonight (by “supposed to” I mean I said I would). This morning I diagnosed myself with intercostal muscle strain, which came on suddenly during a weightlifting workout 11 days ago and sent me to emergency with what I (and the ambulance crew! I’m not a hypochondriac!) thought might be heart attack.
Even 11 days later it hurts when I breathe, laugh, drive, move suddenly, or reach for anything with my left hand.The workout was a trigger, but in retrospect, the injury had been looming. Moving, hosting, having a person fall on me and take me down with them… (That last one’s a bit of a story!)
(I could tell you, but I’d have to kill you!)
Plus work deadlines, plus life, yadda yadda yadda.
It reminds me of 2016 when I got pneumonia.
All the cells in my body are new, but apparently my brain patterns haven’t changed that much. It takes a lot to make me see the need to slow down.
Last week I hit an emotional nadir and went online for advice, where some excellent people said, “take a reset.”
What is a reset?
It means hit pause and listen to your body. Gear back. Stop trying to do all the things you usually do without thinking. I started that reset yesterday, as soon as I delivered on enough project deadlines to get some breathing (lol) space. I’m happy to report that if you are in the habit of doing a lot, even a little rest feels like a game-changer.
Do you need a reset too?
It would not surprise me if you did. Many of us have reverted back to pre-pandemic pacing. Which might not be that good for us.
So if you suspect you need a reset, you probably do.
Let me know, I’d love to hear.
Cheers,
Pat
For the Love of Books
Had a great time Wednesday night talking about reading for a living with the delightful folks at Editors BC (a chapter of Editors Canada). Amanda Goldrick-Jones of Arrow Editing Services was an excellent host!